Charles and Ray Eames - a husband and wife partnership responsible for some of the most important furniture of the 20th century, as well as toys, puzzles, films, exhibitions and even buildings.
The couple started by building wooden leg splints in the spare room of their rented apartment in Los Angeles. A year later, the US Navy ordered 5000, and they moved to a larger workshop - and so began the next 40 years of iconic work.
The Eames carried out a lot of research and work in plywood, developing sculptures, chairs, tables and toy animals from the material. All of their plywood products combine simple, clean, organic aesthetics with true pioneering design and technical ingenuity.
After plywood, the Eames started looking in to alternative materials - plastic, aluminium and even fibreglass. In 1956, they developed the Lounge Chair, in leather and plywood.
This Lounge Chair become something of a status symbol - no self respecting executive could go without one. I think it is testament to the design that this chair looks modern today, 60 years after it was designed. I can also say, having sat in one at the Lighthouse in Glasgow, that they are unbelievably comfortable!
Perhaps one of the couple's most iconic and recognisable desigsn are their DSR and DSW chairs.
Designed in 1948, these are another example of timeless design. In fact, on a recent visit to McDonald's, I spotted these chairs being used in the restaurant!
Again this is testament to the Eames' design - here we have chairs designed in the 1940s that still look great and are strong enough for use in a modern fast food restaurant.
Having said that, I also find it a little sad. Here is a classic design icon placed in a fast food restaurant with wipe-clean faux wood walls and pointless plastic toys. It seems a shame that such an important piece of design should be lumped in with all the other mediocrity in McDonald's.
Or perhaps it is a good thing. Maybe Charles and Ray Eames would be happy that their 70 year old design is being enjoyed and used by people around the world on a daily basis.
Another point before I finish. The Eames' are highly regarded as some of the most important designers of the 20th century. But why? Yes, their furniture is iconic and beautiful, but does that make it important? The world has lots of furniture, and ultimately a chair is only for sitting on. Can we really hold up a designer as a great achiever for designing something that ultimately gave no benefit to the world? Or is it of huge benefit to the world? Is the design of ordinary objects, their refinement, the enjoyment that people get from looking at them and using them, vital to us as people, and what defines civilization? I'll let you think about that one.
